Bad news, Jet Li fans. It looks like your dream of seeing Jet Li take on Tony Jaa in XXX: THE RETURN OF XANDER CAGE has been canceled.

According to Twitch Film, Jet Li has dropped out of the project for unknown reasons. But don’t cry a river just yet, as he as apparently been replaced by actor/martial artist Donnie Yen, who many fans would recognize from such films as IRON MONKEY, IP MAN, and the upcoming ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY.

This report was confirmed by a recent post from Vin Diesel, where he showed himself, Yen, and the director on set of the film. The subtitle for the post was as follows:

“Director, Xiang and Xander…

Donnie Yen’s first day on set.

Our global cast is simply amazing!”

Some fans may notice that no where in Diesel’s post did he say Yen was replacing Li, but if you’ll recall, the character Li was playing was confirmed as none other than Xiang. I’m pretty sure at this point, you can take this info to the bank

But I wouldn’t fret. While Jet Li definitely has a more solid Western appeal, Donnie Yen is a talent in his own right, and has been ripe for Western success for a while now. Between this film and ROGUE ONE, I’d expect to see Donnie Yen blow up in Hollywood over the next couple years.

What do you think of Donnie Yen replacing Jet Li? Let us know in the comments down below!

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